In an unexpected turn of events, 36-1 shot Gin Gin prevailed over a top field of older fillies and mares in the $350,000 Doubledogdare Stakes (G3) April 18 at Keeneland.
The trouble began at the start, when Godolphin homebred Tarifa, a multiple grade 2 winner for trainer Brad Cox, broke a step slow and was forced to check sharply twenty yards from the gate. The projected early runner now found herself in seventh and last as 2023 champion 2-year-old female Just F Y I established a rail-hugging advantage over the inconspicuous Gin Gin.
Stalking the 2-1 race favorite, Gin Gin raced through a dream trip under jockey Jose Ortiz behind early fractions of :23.19 and :47.70. Into the run for the far turn, Junior Alvarado suddenly pulled up the front-running Just F Y I, easing the grade 1 winner out of the race and allowing a waiting Gin Gin to inherit the lead.
Down the lane, Gin Gin could not be caught, surging to a three-length advantage and 5 1/4 lengths at the wire despite late bids from Tarifa, who closed from last to finish second, and second-favorite Candied. The latter, making her first start since a third-place finish in the Nov. 2 Breeders' Cup Distaff (G1), was unable to overcome traffic woes in the race and settled for third.
Gin Gin completed 1 1/16 miles in 1:45.15 on a fast track.
"The last sixteenth she just kept on running, I didn't think they were making up any ground on me," Ortiz said.
Gin Gin, the longest shot on the board, returned $79.76 for a $2 win ticket.
Trained by Brendan Walsh, the Doubledogdare marked Gin Gin's debut for her new barn. Previously under the care of Cox, the 4-year-old daughter of Hightail captured the 2024 Busanda Stakes and was multiple stakes-placed before finishing off the board in the Kentucky Oaks (G1). Given a lengthy freshening, the filly returned in January with a fifth-place effort in a second-level Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots allowance contest.
"I wasn't sure what to expect, to be honest with you," Walsh said. "They (Calumet) asked me to give her a shot to see if she had any zest for the game left or not. And to be fair to her, she's done nothing wrong in her training; she's been training great.
"She's got some good back class, and it was nice she showed it today ... She's a graded stakes winner now too, and that's fantastic. Hopefully, she can build on that."
FanDuel TV reported after the Doubledogdare that Just F Y I was vanned back to her barn and that Alvarado had stopped on the filly as a precautionary measure.
